More From The Paper Clip Menagerie

James was talking about paper clips yesterday and got me thinking about all the other fancy styles of clips out there. There are many more clips out there than your standard gem clip. Yeah, apparently they're officially called gem clips. I'm on board with joining the French and calling them trombones. They may be metal and a must for every Apple user or amateur lock-picker, but elevating them to gem status is a bit much.

Granted, none of these other clips have as many alternate functions as the trombone. They can't measure your carpet to determine which chairmat you need. They certainly can't be bartered for a house. Then again, they also won't insist on helping you with your Microsoft Office documents. They can, however, do a better job of keeping your papers together, especially when you have a larger stack that even the "Trombones Geants" can't handle.

The best part about these clips are the names. No more musical instruments, but rather a full menagerie of aptly-named paper fastening goodness- butterflies, bulldogs and owls.


First is the butterfly- light, graceful and designed to land on documents without leaving marks. It holds a little more than the trombone, but otherwise serves the same purpose.


Here's the bulldog. It bites down on papers and doesn't let go. Great for large stacks up to an inch as it fits a lot into its jowls.


The owl clip is apparently nocturnal as it's not seen nearly as often as the others. It is similar in function to the trombone and butterfly, but with a smaller presence than the butterfly without scratching papers the way the trombone's business end can.

There is also the binder clip, which adds a pair of latching handles to the bulldog clip but lacks a clever name. I'm thinking venus fly trap, but open to suggestions. While you're coming up with names for that, this clip for panel walls desperately needs a cool name. Not sure whether to go with a bird of prey or some sort of spaceship.